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Transport connections to make ICC ideal offices for cross-border businesses with 60-minute direct link to Guangzhou
27 March 2006
International Commerce Centre (ICC) will set new benchmarks for design and quality, and its location just
above Airport Express Kowloon Station will provide exceptionally convenient transport connections. The government is accelerating plans for
additional cross-border rail connections, which will put ICC at the heart of a rail network and add to its attraction. The response to pre-leasing has been enthusiastic, with many potential tenants looking to lease an entire floor or more in this world-class project by Sun Hung Kai Properties.
Comprehensive railway network
ICC is next to the
West Kowloon Station on the Kowloon Southern Link now being built, which will connect KCR's East and West rails when it is finished in 2009. The government is speeding up the KCR's Northern Link development and the proposed
Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link as part of a master plan to increase integration with the
Pearl River Delta.
Sun Hung Kai Real Estate Agency Executive Director Victor Lui said: "When the Kowloon Southern Link is complete, ICC will be at the juncture of three rail lines. Time is money, so ICC will offer the ideal location for cross-border businesses; both mainland companies setting up in Hong Kong or Hong Kong companies and multinationals looking to the north for opportunities."
Mr Lui added: "The Northern Link and Express Rail Link will connect the KCR and MTR networks, which will put ICC at the terminus of this express cross-border rail line, offering easy access to southern China.
Shenzhen will be just 30 minutes away and Guangzhou 60 minutes from ICC. It will make cross-border transport more efficient and ICC tenants more competitive."
Comprehensive road traffic network
CB Richard Ellis Executive Director of Office Services Nigel Smith said that in addition to the easy rail connections, the government's
highway network plan will offer direct vehicular access to the airport and New Territories, putting ICC in an enviable position. The Shenzhen Western Corridor linking the northwest New Territories and Shekou in Shenzhen will significantly boost traffic capacity between the two. A new cross-border coach terminus planned for Kowloon Station will give ICC tenants a full range of travel options.
Economic integration makes ICC ideal
Research and Consultancy Senior Director of Savills (Hong Kong) Simon Smith said: "Hong Kong's stock market is the first choice for mainland companies raising funds.
The number of mainland firms listed in the SAR increased by 44 percent from 2000 to 2005 and their market capitalization grew 1.3 times over the same period. Mainland China is also Hong Kong's most important trading partner, representing 45 percent of total merchandise trade in 2005."
Mr Smith added that the days when businesses were concentrated on a few areas in Hong Kong are in the past. ICC is now widely recognized as having an advantageous location and comprehensive transport connections, and many leasing enquiries have been received already.
Mr Lui said that the overall economic growth worldwide, the Closer Economic Partnership Agreement between Hong Kong and the mainland and the new policy of facilitating mainland investments in Hong Kong will create new business opportunities. Mainland companies coming to Hong Kong to list and the expansion of multinationals and local companies in the Pearl River Delta mean that the demand for premium office space will be strong over the medium to long terms. ICC's convenient transportation is expected to draw tenants from the financial, accounting and cross-border trade sectors.
ICC will rise to 490 metres, making it Hong Kong's tallest building and the world's third tallest in terms of usable floors. It will also have the most advanced design and intelligent facilities. The 10th to 22nd floors will contain about 450,000 square feet of floor area and are scheduled for completion between 2007 and 2010. Pre-leasing has started.